Have to say I'm dreading heading to the airport for our Christmas vacation. Heard so many horror stories about the TSA harassing passengers with naked scans and grope sessions I feel I should bring a tube of lube and a post-coital cigarette with me.
But remember when there was no TSA? Remember when that guy in the uniform would just check your passport and wish you a good flight? Remember when airports used to be less like checkin-in at a federal supermax? I guess it's just the price of freedom in the war on terror... or something.
So I got to wondering what's actually been achieved with all this security crap - aside from a few guys getting rich selling scanners to the government. I know a few "blow-uppies" like the underpants bomber have slipped through. But how many have actually been caught? Seems not many:
The TSA won't cite any specific instance when it stopped a terrorist; it says that's because of national security concerns, but some argue it's actually because the organization has never actually stopped a terrorist.
Of course, you could argue that the presence of TSA itself acts as a deterrent. So maybe they've stopped terrorists we don't even get to hear about. But that's hard to buy. Do we really think it's beyond a dedicated psycho's wiles to outsmart a minimum-wage TSA screener if they wanted to? Hell, I've walked onto planes with all kinds of crazy, prohibited sh*t in my carry-on (not on purpose, just through absence of mind you understand). So for every TSA agent patting down a senior citizen, checking that teenage girl's shampoo for nitroglycerin, there's probably a thousand guys like me strolling onto planes with stanley knives, Mexican fireworks and half-ounce bags of weed they forgot they still had on them.
So why not cut the BS? Why not quit applying our uniquely American enthusiasm for superfluous technology and seeing people naked and take a tip from the Israelis? As the all-time number one terror target in the world, Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion airport and the flights out of it have always been remarkably explosion-free. Why? Because Israeli airport security relies not on big, stupid machines and cheap labor but on smart, well-trained people who actually know what they're doing. Just a thought.
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I keep hearing about Israel security but nobody has given any details in any of the references.
ReplyDeleteA couple months ago my wife went through TSA with a scalpel blade in her make-up kit. . . didn't mean to. I wonder what a determined person could get past those mental giants who work for TSA.
From what I've heard, the Israelis rely on Jedi mind stuff. They have highly-trained people who look you straight in the eye and ask polite, probing questions and are able to read the way people react and gauge the threat level. Simple as that but effective.
ReplyDeleteI remember being questioned while trying to leave Israel by boat. The asked strange questions like what kind of laundry detergent I used while there. It was clear they were just looking for what kind of physical reaction you gave. The interrogation went on for 10 minutes or so before I was allowed to board. No pat down, no bag searches. Admittedly, I was a little nervous as my interrogator was a brutally hot Israeli girl...so mine may have taken a little longer.
ReplyDeletePretty sure the Israeli method is largely based on racial profiling as I saw several Arabs pulled out of line to be interrogated behind closed doors.